[Nair.V8]

This year we celebrate over 10 years & 65,000 kms of joyous motoring with our beloved 2012 Skoda Superb Elegance 1.8 TSi DSG, lovingly named Elizabeth (Liz). She was purchased from Autobahn Skoda Mumbai in March 2012 (back when car prices were far more digestible), the Superb was quite simply the best choice within our 30L budget. Other cars we checked out included the BMW X1, Mercedes-Benz C200 & Volkswagen Passat. But none of these seemed to fit our purpose for a spacious petrol automatic luxury car to replace our rather lovely 2007 Honda CRV 2.4 M/T. The Superb felt like an ideal upgrade in terms of space, build quality, features, tech & driving pleasure.

A pretty picture of Liz from delivery day.


A photoshoot from 2012 with a friends Honda Accord. The sheer sight of these regal rivals in matching paint shades grabbed a lot of attention from bystanders!


Our Superb is primarily used to chauffeur my father to work, for business trips, the occasional family roadtrips, and of course for my weekend joy rides in & around Mumbai. Over the years she has been fairly reliable apart from the one-time mechatronic failure which was duly replaced under warranty. Regular and timely maintenance has ensured a more or less trouble-free ownership experience over the last ten years.


Since the last two years we have been carrying out all routine service and maintenance at Redline-Autohaus Jogeshwari & Mody Skoda. Recent the car suffered from a sagging headliner; this was duly replaced with a completely new one. The job was superbly executed at Redline Autohaus for a reasonable price and now the interior looks good as new once again. Other components that were replaced recently include the radiator, power window switches and brake pads.


The headlamp bulbs have been replaced this month with a new set of Osram D1S 35W xenon bulbs. All though the improvement in night visibility is noticeable better, the headlights will need some level of buffing/sanding to truly restore the stock illumination output.


The instrument cluster has lit up like a Christmas tree off late, all lights remain lit even when driving the car. After consulting with Redline Autohaus & Mody Skoda, this issue was narrowed down to a faulty ABS unit. The quote received from Skoda for the replacement unit is rather expensive. Will resort to the services of a trusted local garage.


Attaching a few pics below from some of our road trips with Elizabeth:

Bangalore:


Kerala:


Panchgani:


Aamby Valley:


Despite the occasional expensive maintenance bills, we have honestly enjoyed every moment with this solid German limo. We had no intentions of keeping her this long, she has served us unexpectedly well over the past decade. Very few cars have been able to offer this combination of space, quality, luxury & value. It’s been close to a year since we began scouting for a suitable ‘upgrade’ and literally nothing in the 30L to 50L segment comes close to delivering this experience besides a new Skoda Superb.

[shauryadabas]

Hi Nair.V8, congratulations on your 10 year anniversary with this full size Skoda. IMO, the dashboard looks superior and classy when compared to the current generation Superb. Would love to see updates on this thread.

[Gypsian]

The Superb is analogous to the E - Class, 5 Series and A6 if your not particular about brand. It’s a tiger in the wolf’s clothes, which brands resort to for the sake of brand conscious consumers. Considering the current scenario, replace it after couple of years or more, as the car looks to be in great shape.

[GForceEnjoyer]

Such a beautiful car, and equally beautiful pictures too. The design has aged incredibly well despite being over 10 years old now. Looks magnificently maintained, wishing you lots of pleasurable driving ahead.

[Turbohead]

Your best bet is either the current gen or next gen Superb or the Camry.

But man! That's a long ownership of a car which is known to be not so reliable! Glad you're having a great time with it!

[GaryTSI]

Hey, there fellow Superb owner! I absolutely loved the write-up and I am happy to see you having a good time with your car. I absolutely echo your thoughts and agree that this is one of the best cars one could get south of 50 lakhs. Even as GTO says, 80% of the E class for 50% of the price.

I have taken TDs in a few new Mercs and BMWs and they didn't feel as solid and heavy as my B6 Superb and nothing feels like a wholistic upgrade from this car unless one is willing to shell out the big bucks. Even the new Superb, while brilliant and arguably one of the best new cars under 40 lakhs, still doesn't match the older PQ-based Superb.

Here's my 2013 Superb TSI MT with the same 'Amethyst Royal' paint.

[Nair.V8]

Originally Posted by shauryadabas

Hi Nair.V8, congratulations on your 10 year anniversary with this full size Skoda. IMO, the dashboard looks superior and classy when compared to the current generation Superb. Would love to see updates on this thread.

Thank you shauryadabas, the interior of the gen2 Superb does have an old school charm. Looks rather classy even today!

Originally Posted by Gypsian

The Superb is analogous to the E - Class, 5 Series and A6 if your not particular about brand. It’s a tiger in the wolf’s clothes, which brands resort to for the sake of brand conscious consumers. Considering the current scenario, replace it after couple of years or more, as the car looks to be in great shape.

Absolutely true! Age notwithstanding, our Superb has never given us a reason to upgrade so far.

Originally Posted by GForceEnjoyer

Such a beautiful car, and equally beautiful pictures too. The design has aged incredibly well despite being over 10 years old now. Looks magnificently maintained, wishing you lots of pleasurable driving ahead.

Thank you for your kind words GForceEnjoyer.

[Nair.V8]

Originally Posted by GaryTSI

Hey, there fellow Superb owner! I absolutely loved the write-up and I am happy to see you having a good time with your car. I absolutely echo your thoughts and agree that this is one of the best cars one could get south of 50 lakhs. Even as GTO says, 80% of the E class for 50% of the price.

I have taken TDs in a few new Mercs and BMWs and they didn't feel as solid and heavy as my B6 Superb and nothing feels like a wholistic upgrade from this car unless one is willing to shell out the big bucks. Even the new Superb, while brilliant and arguably one of the best new cars under 40 lakhs, still doesn't match the older PQ-based Superb.

Here's my 2013 Superb TSI MT with the same 'Amethyst Royal' paint.

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GaryTSI greetings fellow Superb owner. So nice to see another well maintained B6, your car looks absolutely mint!

Originally Posted by Turbohead

Your best bet is either the current gen or next gen Superb or the Camry.

But man! That's a long ownership of a car which is known to be not so reliable! Glad you're having a great time with it!

Very true Turbohead. We too are inclined to replace her with the new Superb.
I guess we got lucky with Elizabeth; I'm sure the low mileage & routine maintenance also helped.

[Nair.V8]

I would like to update that our beloved B6 Superb was sold last month. She has been replaced by a 2022 B8 Superb L&K.



I have created a post regarding my initial impressions, here is the link for the same: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...ior-shade.html (A closer look at the 2022 Skoda Superb's ‘Cognac’ interior shade).

Regards.

[Akki272]

Hello there, Sorry for the late response as i just saw this post on TBHP. As a fellow Superb Elegance 1.8 TSI owner, i must say this car is nothing short of a limousine and having previously travelled abroad in Merc E-class 2021, the leg room at the back in the Superb clearly outweighs the Mercs (both the E and almost equivalent to the S). Mine has completed a good 12 years now and is up and running smooth as butter.

Mine's a Candy white and it clearly stands out compared to the cars of today, where space is compromised in a bid to add more tech-filled features. Have test driven several new cars such as VW Virtus, Skoda Slavia, Toyota Camry 2020, but after being in a Superb so long, i can safely say this cars a keeper for life.

For those who may think about maintenance and expensive parts, my car has never given me headaches to deal with and again, it all depends on driver to driver handling and proper scheduled maintenance checks.

Posting a few pics.